School Days
by MsWikit
Summary: La'gaan is taken off the streets by Queen Mera herself and put into Atlantis' most prestigious school: the Conservatory of Sorcery. In his time there, he experiences the ups and downs of life.
1. Class Epsilon

I promised you a new story, did I not? This story will focus on a variety of characters, but La'gaan will remain the main focus throughout. This story could go on for a while, so get ready for some ups and downs. Oh, and special thanks to Erika for being my Beta reader for this story!

* * *

"I would like to make this conference brief, if at all possible," Queen Mera said as she took her seat. "My day has been rather busy as it is. But, even so, you each have my full attention."

In front of her sat the Conservatory's senior professors. On top of their duties as teachers, they decided which students were placed into which classes. Their decisions were based on placement exams given to each student on the first day of the semester. Age did not matter; in the Conservatory, you were put in the class that was best suited to your current skill level.

Professor Tullus cleared his throat. "We called this meeting to discuss one student in particular."

"And which student is this?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Another teacher, Professor Atella spoke up. "A young boy by the name of La'gaan."

Queen Mera sighed internally. She should have been expecting this. "If this is about his admission, I know it is…untraditional. But he has my seal of approval, and as headmistress of this school-"

"We are not questioning his admission," Professor Tullus interrupted. "But his placement exams show that the boy is clearly in over his head."

He handed Mera a small group of scrolls. She took them and began to unravel them. They revealed La'gaan's scores in each of the written exams. Each one – history, language, science, and mathematics – was a dismal failure. La'gaan had made an attempt to answer every question, but answered few correctly. Queen Mera furrowed her brow. She had plucked this boy from the streets, so it wasn't a huge shock that his education was extremely limited. But her professors would surely use this as an excuse to thrust him back out into the depths of poverty.

"So put him into the lowest class and have his teachers work with him," Mera sighed, accidentally letting her irritation show.

"Under normal circumstances, we would," Professor Calista broke in. "But there's the matter of his sorcery exam."

This, again, did not come as a shock to the queen. She had seen what La'gaan was capable of back in Nanauve, where he released a spell so powerful that he accidentally killed a man. "And what were the results?"

Calista sighed. "They were…shocking, to say the least. The boy has a natural aptitude for sorcery. He scored better than some of the older students. But his talent is very raw. If it is not directed and honed correctly, he could accidentally injure himself or his classmates."

Suddenly Mera thought back to the weeks after La'gaan's first display of magic. The poor child had been in the hospital for weeks, half-dead and unmoving. The thought of it made her shudder. No child should have to suffer that way. "He needs to be in advanced sorcery classes."

"And now you see our dilemma," Professor Atella interjected once more. "La'gaan qualifies – if not requires – advanced sorcery classes. But his academics aren't up to par. All attempts at reaching a compromise on this matter have proven fruitless. So we decided to take the matter directly to you."

They had come across issues like this before, where Mera was called in to make the final decision regarding a student. The process could take hours. Protocol required that she listen to each teacher that had something to say on the matter. And, since everybody had an opinion, she was forced to listen to all of them detail their points. The entire ordeal always left Queen Mera feeling exhausted.

She had already made her decision early on in the discussion of La'gaan's placement. Now she was just following proper etiquette. When the last professor finally finished, Mera felt a rush of relief.

"I have listened to each of your opinions on this matter," she began, "and I have ultimately come to a decision of my own. Calista, what class would you recommend for La'gaan, based solely on his natural aptitude for sorcery?"

"Class Epsilon, at least," Professor Calista answered.

Mera nodded. "Then that is my decision. Put him in Class Epsilon."

"But, my queen, his academics-" Professor Tullus began to protest.

She held up her hand, silencing him. "Alert his teachers that La'gaan will see each of them at least twice a week for extra help. They will need to arrange their schedules to accommodate him. I would also request that you select a tutor from among his peers. Preferably someone with a calm disposition and a great amount of patience," Queen Mera ordered. She could tell from the looks on her faces that none of them were happy with this decision.

Professor Tullus broke in again. "My queen, I mean no disrespect, but…it seems as if you are setting the boy up to fail. Even with all of this extra assistance, he will not catch up to his classmates."

"I mean no disrespect, professor, but I believe you are underestimating La'gaan," Queen Mera replied. "He will know that he's at a disadvantage. And that will make him work twice as hard. If you put an obstacle in front of him, he will do anything in his power to overcome it."

Before any of the other professors could protest, Mera rose from her seat. "The matter has been settled, and I will take my leave."

With that, she swam out.

xxxx

When La'gaan woke up, he found that his roommate Blubber had already gone on to breakfast. It struck him as odd, but he didn't give it anymore thought than that. When he swam into the Dining Hall, he saw that most of the students were crowded along one of the walls. They were peering over each other's shoulders trying to look at something. La'gaan raised an eyebrow at the commotion.

_Everyone is acting strange this morning_, he thought.

La'gaan got his breakfast and found Blubber sitting at one of the tables. He was staring over at the wall, his food practically untouched.

"What's up with you, chum?" La'gaan asked, elbowing his new friend playfully. It had been a long time since he'd had a friend. It was nice to finally have someone to joke around with.

Blubber nodded towards the crowd of students. "They posted the classes. They have everyone's exams sorted."

"What ex- oh." Just like that, La'gaan's mood soured. He speared a piece of fish with his fork. They'd taken exams the day before. La'gaan could barely read the questions, much less answer them. Everyone around him had finished, while he'd barely gotten halfway through. Apparently, the tests determined what class you were put in. There were seven: Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, Zeta, and Eta. Alpha being the best of the best and Eta being the worst of the worst. La'gaan was sure he'd get thrown in Eta, if they kept him at all. Part of him hoped they would just throw him out. It was obvious he didn't belong here. So maybe it would be better if he just left.

"I got here early to go see how I did, but I lost my nerve," Blubber sighed.

"I'll go look for you." La'gaan volunteered. He wasn't nervous at all. When all you expect is dismal failure, you're not exactly going to be let down by the results. He got up and swam over, pushing through the throng until he reached the front of the crowd.

He checked the Eta list first. Blubber's name wasn't on it, but La'gaan didn't expect it to be. Blubber had done well in all of his exams. Shockingly, his name wasn't on the Eta list either. Maybe they'd decided to throw him out after all. He continued on to the Zeta list. Still nothing. When he looked over the Epsilon list, he finally found Blubber's name. La'gaan couldn't help but smile. Most of the students in Epsilon were two or three years older than them.

Then La'gaan got the shock of his life.

Written down towards the bottom of Epsilon list was _his _name. He read it over at least five times, not believing what his eyes were telling him.

"Neptune's beard!" he yelled, still in disbelief. He swam back over to his table. The stunned look on his face made Blubber panic.

"No, no! Don't tell me! I got Eta didn't I? Oh, Neptune, my dad is going to_ kill_ me-" Blubber started to freak out.

"No," La'gaan said, too softly at first. He cleared his throat. "No, you didn't get Eta. You got into Epsilon. Congrats, chum."

This news cheered his friend considerably. "Really? That's…what did you get?"

"Epsilon." La'gaan spoke without any emotion. He was still trying to take all of this in. He'd arrived in Poseidonis not three days before. Now he was enrolled in the best school in Atlantis, and he'd just been placed into an advanced class. This was too much. He was just a kid from the streets. He couldn't do this. He couldn't. La'gaan could hear his heartbeat in his ears. This had to be a joke. Some sick, cruel joke. He could barely read, and they expected him to compete with kids that had been working at this for their whole lives?

Blubber sat there in complete shock. Neither of them spoke for a good minute. Finally, Blubber cleared his throat. "That's…that's great!"

"No," La'gaan growled. "It's not. Blubber, look at me! They're setting me up to fail!"

"You said you did really well in your sorcery exam!" Blubber protested.

"Neptune's beard, I do well on _one_ exam and they put me in the same class as you?!" La'gaan snapped. He frowned down at his breakfast, suddenly not hungry anymore. "They just want to fail me and kick me out."

"Even if they do," Blubber said, "are you going to let them beat you?"

The words struck a nerve. La'gaan was a fighter to the core, and he hated being beaten by anyone. Facing defeat was absolutely humiliating. It made him sick to his stomach. Yet it was a feeling that he was very familiar with. In Nanauve, all that counted was your strength. Compared to most of the boys on the streets, La'gaan was nothing but a shrimp. Over time he learned to turn his weaknesses into advantages. He was small, but he was quick. But often it wasn't enough; he lost about as many fights as he won.

"No," La'gaan said with sudden determination. "I'm not. I'm not leaving this school until I graduate at the top of Class Alpha!"

Blubber grinned. "That's the spirit."

xxxx

After breakfast, students were sent to their class advisors to receive their schedules. This process was lengthy and involved waiting in a long line of other chattering students. But La'gaan finally received his schedule. For the second time that day, his courage faltered. To him, his classes seemed extremely intimidating:

_Advanced Atlantean History I – Professor Tullus, Room 453 _

_Advanced Sorcery II – Professor Calista, Room 601_

_Advanced Mathematics I – Professor Urc'hkin, Room 226_

_Advanced Science I – Professor Magro, Room 341_

_Advanced Atlantean Language and Literature I – Professor Corvo, Room 416_

La'gaan swallowed his fear. He'd faced sharks, gangs, and war lords in Nanauve. He could handle a few stupid classes. Not long after receiving his schedule, Blubber informed La'gaan that he still had to sign up for two electives. This involved reading over a very long list of optional classes (all of which Blubber had to explain to him), signing up for the two that looked the most interesting (Surface History and Survival Strategies), and then waiting in another insufferably long line to get his final schedule approved.

The process took the entire day, and by the time dinner rolled around La'gaan was fed up with all of it. "Is it always going to be like this?"

"Just the first few days," Blubber assured him. "Tomorrow classes start, and after a week or so it stops being so chaotic. You'll get used to the routine."

La'gaan wasn't so sure.


	2. Professor Tullus

The lecture hall was only half-full when La'gaan and Blubber arrived at their first class. Not even the professor had arrived. With nothing else to do, they took their seats (close to the front, since Blubber insisted) and waited for class to begin. La'gaan took the opportunity to scout out the rest of his classmates. There were only a handful of students that were as young as they were. Everyone else was at least thirteen or fourteen years old. It made him feel outnumbered and small, and he found himself longing for the familiarity of the streets. In Nanauve, he knew exactly where he stood. In Poseidonis, he had absolutely no idea.

His observations were interrupted by a light tap on the shoulder. When he turned, La'gaan found himself face-to-face with a mermaid.

"Is this seat taken?" she asked, nodding to the empty seat next to him.

"Um…no. No, it's not," La'gaan answered.

The mermaid girl smiled gratefully and took her seat. "Thanks…I kind of woke up late, so I had to rush to get here…I'm Lori, by the way. Lori Lemaris."

"La'gaan," he introduced himself. "This is Blubber."

Lori grinned. "It's nice to meet you…are you both first years too?"

They both nodded. Before the conversation could continue any further, however, the professor entered. A sudden hush fell over the students. He stood in front of his desk and surveyed his class. His silver eyes seemed to criticize anyone unlucky enough to be caught in his gaze. During this silent catechism, La'gaan thought that the professor's eyes lingered on him for a second longer than the other students. The young boy frowned back at him. He knew this professor was just trying to intimidate them all. Well, it wasn't going to work. Not on him.

"Welcome," the professor said. "I am Professor Tullus. I will tell you here and now: I am not here to be your friend. I will not attempt to be. Nor will I attempt to make this class easy. If you are not being challenged, I am not doing my job right. And if you cannot keep up…then I suggest you leave the Conservatory now. It only gets worse from here."

It could have been his imagination, but La'gaan was certain that Professor Tullus looked right at him when he said those words.

"Now, let's begin," the professor said. "Who can tell me what year Atlantis was founded?"

Hands (and in some cases, fins) shot up all around him. La'gaan sunk a little lower in his chair.

Professor Tullus pointed to Lori.

"It depends on which system you're using," Lori answered. "If you're going by the Standard, then it's the year 1. If you're going by the Ancient System, then it was founded in the year 116."

"And what is the difference between the two?" Professor Tullus asked, raising his eyebrows.

"The Standard starts at Atlantis' founding, when the first king of Poseidonis was crowned. The Ancient System begins when the first city-states were founded," Lori explained. La'gaan stared at her in complete awe. He didn't know there were two different calendars, much less when they started.

Professor Tullus nodded. "Very good. And who was the first king of Poseidonis?"

Again, hands and fins shot up. La'gaan stared down at his lap.

"You."

Blubber nudged La'gaan, forcing him to look up. Professor Tullus was staring right at him. In fact,_ everyone_ was. Why?

La'gaan was taken aback. "Um…what?"

A few giggles broke out among the students behind him. The professor, however, was not amused. He narrowed his eyes. "I do not like having to repeat myself. But, I will ask the question one more time: who was the first king of Poseidonis?"

"…does it matter?" La'gaan blurted out. As soon as the words left his mouth, he knew it was the wrong thing to say. Some of the other students started laughing. Others simply stared at him, astounded and scandalized he'd ask such a question.

"Does it matter? _Does it matter_? Of course it matters! It is your history. Our history!" Professor Tullus snapped.

"How does knowing the first king of Poseidonis help me in anything?" La'gaan demanded, crossing his arms over his chest. It seemed like a stupid question to him. Who cared about the first king of Poseidonis? He was dead. Long gone. "It's the past. It doesn't matter anymore."

Professor Tullus didn't say a word. The laughter died down, and an uncomfortable silence engulfed the room. Students squirmed in their seats. Even La'gaan began to wish that he would just get the yelling over with. It would be better than just sitting there waiting for the storm to hit.

"Our young friend poses a very interesting question," Professor Tullus finally said.

"…I do?" La'gaan stared at him in astonishment.

His teacher was ignoring him now. "It is a question that has been posed many times before by many different people. Why do we study history? Why do we put so much emphasis on the past? It is, after all, over and done with. Everyone who was involved and directly affected is dead. So why does it matter?"

He put his hands behind his back, standing like a commander surveying his troops. "Does anyone care to venture an answer?"

One boy raised his hand. "Those who do not know their past are often doomed to repeat it."

"Very good, Kaldur'ahm," Professor Tullus nodded once to the boy who spoke. "When a person makes a mistake, they learn from it. It is the same with a functioning society. We look at the wrongs we have done, as individuals and as a culture, and the mistakes we have made. If we were to forget these mistakes, we would be bound to repeat them. History reminds us of what we once were and tells us how we became what we are now. Without history, we would forget ourselves."

There was a long silence following his words. La'gaan looked down, refusing to meet his teacher's gaze.

"Now," Professor Tullus said, "can anyone tell me who the first king of Poseidonis was?"

xxxx

At first, La'gaan thought he might get away without a punishment. The professor said nothing to him as they left class, so he assumed he was home free. But that night at dinner, another student swam up and handed La'gaan a note. She didn't tell him who it was from. She didn't have to. The sympathetic look on her face said it all. La'gaan grumbled his thanks and watched her swim off.

"What does it say?" Blubber asked.

La'gaan unfolded the note. It took him a good minute to read the one sentence written on it:

_Meet me at Quad after dinner. – Professor Tullus_

The Quad was always a center of activity, as it was a favorite place for study and play. It had benches and tables where friends could sit, study, and talk. But there was enough open space for games and rough-housing. A statue of the sea goddess Salacia presided over it all, watching the students and protecting them.

La'gaan waited for Professor Tullus at the foot of the statue. He watched the other students go about their business like they didn't have a care in the world. A group of girls broke out into a fit of giggles every two minutes. One couple sat on one of the stone benches and kissed, oblivious to the world around them. All of them fit in perfectly here. And they knew it. Poseidonis was where they were meant to be. La'gaan envied them. He didn't know where he belonged.

"La'gaan." Professor Tullus' voice snapped him out of his thoughts. He looked up and saw his professor hovering over him.

"Sir." La'gaan frowned at him.

"Swim with me," Professor Tullus commanded. Without another word he began to swim off through the Quad. La'gaan hung back for a moment, unsure of what to make of this. He looked up at the statue of Salacia and said a quick, silent prayer. Then he swam off and joined his professor.

They swam for many minutes without saying a word. La'gaan could feel himself going crazy. He wished that Professor Tullus would just yell at him already. It was better than this agonizing silence. Finally La'gaan couldn't take it anymore. He snapped. "Are you going to yell at me or what?!"

"No, I am not," Professor Tullus answered. His voice was maddeningly calm. "I do not want to rant and rave at you, La'gaan. Because I am fairly sure you won't hear a word of it. Am I right?"

La'gaan looked away, glaring at nothing in particular. "Then why am I out here?"

"I want to know why you are trying so hard to get yourself thrown out of this school," Professor Tullus answered.

"I'm not trying to get myself thrown out!" La'gaan protested.

Professor Tullus raised his eyebrows. "Really? Because you are doing a fantastic job at it."

"Maybe it's because I don't belong here," La'gaan grumbled. "I don't know anything about this stuff. No one ever taught me math or history or anything like that. No one taught me anything."

"That much is obvious," the professor sighed. "If you don not belong here, where do you belong? Hm? Out on the streets of Nanauve? Stealing and fighting for every scrap of food? Is that the sort of life you want for yourself? You are capable of much more than that, and you know it."

La'gaan gritted his teeth and balled his hands into fists. "No, I'm not! Why do you guys keep thinking that?! I can barely read and write! I'm just some charity case to you people!"

"Even if you are, you have been given an opportunity!" Professor Tullus was angry now. He frowned down at La'gaan. "You may not belong here. But when the gods give you a blessing, you do not ask why it was sent. This is your chance to save yourself. No one is going to do it for you, and you may not get another try."

The young boy sighed in frustration and sat down on the sea floor. He crossed his arms over his chest. "I just don't know what everyone is expecting of me."

Professor Tullus sighed and sat down beside him. "Well, I see your life taking one of two paths."

"What are they?" La'gaan asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

"You will either achieve greatness, or fail miserably," Professor Tullus answered. He smirked slightly at him. "But it is better to try and fail than to not try at all."

"…you really think I could be great?" La'gaan asked. No one had ever said anything like that to him before.

"Yes. Which is why I will be pushing you twice as hard. My job is to make sure you become the great sorcerer you are meant to be." Professor Tullus stood. "So, I will do everything within my power to make your time at this school the most challenging and frustrating experience of your entire life. Do you understand?"

La'gaan wasn't sure. This whole conversation was confusing to him. "You believe in me, so you're going to try and make me give up?"

His professor seemed amused. "Close enough, I suppose. Now…the only thing left to discuss is your punishment. You can spend the next month polishing my collection of Ancient Atlantean artifacts."

"What?! That's so unfair!" La'gaan argued.

"You will start tomorrow evening." Professor Tullus said. With that, he swam off.


	3. In the Shadow of Salacia

La'gaan's classes didn't waste any time. They got right into the material. Some of his classes were frustratingly difficult, while others weren't too strenuous. History wasn't so bad, though La'gaan had difficult memorizing dates and names of important figures. It didn't help that Professor Tullus was constantly calling on him, even though he knew that he didn't know what the answer was. Yet that treatment was preferable to what he got in his sorcery class. The professor, though she meant well, was constantly talking down to him. She told him things like, "If you can't handle this spell, you can sit this one out." Or, "This may be difficult for someone of your background, La'gaan." It humiliated and infuriated him.

But, in some ways, she was right. He was in over his head on almost all fronts. It would be easier if La'gaan were better at reading and writing. He was barely literate as it was. Blubber often had to read things aloud to him, or help him write something down. His friend insisted he didn't mind, but he couldn't hide his astonishment.

"Didn't they teach you how to read in primary school?" Blubber asked.

"I never went to primary school," La'gaan grumbled. He'd known kids that went to school. It was free, and they seemed to like it. But La'gaan didn't see any use for it. Would books get him food? Would they get him money and keep him safe? Now, however, he was regretting not spending time on his education. It would have made his life easier.

"Didn't your parents teach you?" Blubber persisted.

The thought of his parents made La'gaan tense up. "No."

"What? Why?" Blubber was horrified. "Didn't they know how to read?"

"I don't know!" La'gaan snapped. "They're both dead, so what's it matter?!"

This completely shocked Blubber. "I…I'm sorry. I didn't know."

La'gaan didn't say anything. He stared down at the scroll in his lap, willing the words to start making sense. The words were still just symbols on a page and nothing more. Not for the first time, he wished they'd start making sense. It would give him something else to think about. The silence between them seemed to stretch on for hours.

"…you're angry with me, aren't you?" Blubber asked tentatively.

"No," La'gaan answered. He sighed in frustration. "I just…I don't like thinking about them. That's all. You did not know."

"What happened to them?" Blubber immediately regretted asking. He stumbled through his next words. "I- I mean. You don't have to tell me. I should not have asked. I-"

"It's fine, chum," La'gaan assured him. He frowned slightly, looking up from the scroll. "My father…my father was killed by Ocean Master's men when I was young. My mother abandoned me in Nanauve."

"She abandoned you? Why?" Blubber asked.

La'gaan frowned and looked away. "I was sick. I had the Red Cough. She thought I was dying…and she left me. Didn't even wait to make sure I was dead. Just left. I haven't seen her since."

"So…she could still be alive?" Blubber suggested. "Maybe she's out there. You just have to find her."

"What makes you think I want to find her?" La'gaan snapped.

The question caught Blubber off-guard. He'd always had a great relationship with both of his parents. He couldn't imagine life without them. "Well, she's your only family. Isn't she? If she's alive-"

"I don't want to talk about this anymore!" La'gaan threw the scroll down and got up. "I'm going for a swim."

"La'gaan, my friend, I did not mean to upset you!" Blubber got up as well, frowning with concern. "Please. Do not be angry with me."

Something about Blubber always took the fight out of La'gaan. He was the first best friend he'd ever really had. It was impossible to be mad at him. "I'm not angry with you. I promise. I just need to clear my head. I will be back before dinner."

His friend hesitated, then nodded. He was learning that it was better to let La'gaan be alone when he was angry. It allowed him to gather his thoughts and clear his mind. "Alright."

La'gaan left the campus for the first time that evening. There was no rule against it. Students were free to explore the city, so long as it was not during class hours. The streets were crowded with people. But La'gaan didn't notice any of them. He didn't pay attention to where he was going or why. His mind was filled with screaming and blood. So much blood. His father's blood, his own blood, the blood of his friends…there was a reason he did not think about his parents. It stirred up too many bad memories.

When he pulled himself from his thoughts, La'gaan found himself out in front of a temple. There were many throughout the city, each devoted to a different god. Many Atlanteans preferred one god over another. Their 'patron' god, many called them. But La'gaan had no patron. He'd never been able to rely on gods to help him. Yet he still swam inside.

The temple's exterior was painted blue-green, and the frieze was carved with dolphins. La'gaan guessed that it was a temple devoted to the sea goddess Salacia, and he proved to be correct. In the center of the temple there was a giant statue of her. Her head was crowned with seaweed, and her hands were outstretched towards her worshippers. La'gaan's academic education was limited, but every child in Atlantis heard the stories of the gods. Salacia was the goddess of the sea, Neptune's queen, and the protector of every Atlantean child.

"Where were you when I needed you?" La'gaan murmured, glaring up at her. "Why aren't you with me now?"

"Salacia is always with us," said a voice behind him.

La'gaan turned and found himself staring at a girl. She was a mermaid with long brown hair and bright blue eyes. La'gaan recognized her from school, but he forgot her name. "Who are you?"

"My name is Lori. We have history together," the girl whispered. It was impolite to speak loudly in a temple. Talking at all was supposed to be avoided. The priests that maintained the sanctuary were already giving them dirty looks. She motioned for La'gaan to follow her out. And though he hesitated, he eventually swam after her and out on to the street.

"Why do you want to talk to me?" La'gaan asked, eying her warily.

Lori smiled sheepishly. "I have actually been trying to catch you since I saw you leave the dorms. You're very fast – has anyone ever told you that?"

"That doesn't answer my question, chum," La'gaan said. He crossed his arms and frowned.

"I was assigned to be your tutor," Lori explained. "Well, asked really. One of my professors introduced me to the queen, and she requested I help you."

"I don't need any help. With anything," La'gaan growled.

Lori frowned slightly in concern. "La'gaan, there is no reason to be ashamed. Your professors are going to work with you as well. Things have been hectic since the semester started, but now that we are all settled-"

"I don't need any help! Neptune's beard, are you deaf?" La'gaan cried.

She sighed and looked him in the eye. "Her Majesty said you may react this way…this is not Nanauve, La'gaan. There are many people who want you to succeed. I am one of them. But you have to learn to accept help. It is not a sign of weakness. Everyone gets overwhelmed at some point."

La'gaan looked away. "Why do you care?"

"You seem nice," Lori answered. "A bit stubborn, but nice all the same."

"I am not stubborn!" La'gaan protested. The girl didn't say anything. She just raised her eyebrows at him and crossed her arms over her chest. "…ok, maybe I am."

Lori giggled a bit. "So, will you let me help you?"

He hesitated. His classes were only getting harder, not easier. At this rate he would not be able to keep up. Like it or not, a tutor was what he needed. La'gaan sighed and nodded. "I guess. Just…don't tell anyone about it. I don't want word to spread. Understand?"

"Sure," Lori agreed. She glanced back the temple. "Did I interrupt your prayers?"

La'gaan turned his eyes back towards the temple as well. "…no. I was just wandering."

"Salacia is my patron god, you know," Lori said, still staring up at the temple. "It is good luck that we met in her temple. My mother once told me that if you meet a person in the eyes of your patron, your friendship will be blessed." She looked back at La'gaan. "Who is your patron?"

"I don't have one," La'gaan answered. "I don't need one."

"You don't need a tutor, you don't need a patron god…what do you need?" Lori asked, smirking slightly.

La'gaan smirked back at her. "I need food to eat, a place to sleep, and water to swim in. That's all I need."

With that he swam ahead, going back towards the Conservatory. Lori was at his side in a moment. La'gaan glanced at her. A mischievous smile slowly spread across his face. "Last one back to the Conservatory is a piece of rotten shark bait!"

He darted ahead, swimming through the water at an impressive speed. Lori laughed and swam after him. When she got closer, she reached forward and grabbed his ankle. She yanked him back and used his momentum to get ahead.

"Hey!" La'gaan laughed. "That's cheating!"

"So is giving yourself a head start!" Lori shot back. She grinned and kept swimming. They overtook each other multiple times on their race back, and in the end it was La'gaan who won. But by that point they were both so tired and exhilarated that they did not care. Together they sat in the courtyard, recovering from their swim.

La'gaan smiled at Lori. "You know, you're okay."

"Is that a compliment?" Lori grinned.

"Maybe," La'gaan chuckled.

Off in the distance, they heard the chimes that signaled it was time for dinner. La'gaan got to his feet. "You should come eat with me and my friend tonight. I mean…if you want to, anyway."

"I'd love to. Lead the way," Lori said.


	4. Fight

Finally got around to updating this...thanks to my friend Kate for beta-ing this chapter!

* * *

Days went by, and the students of the Conservatory began to settle into their new daily routines. Even La'gaan managed to get used to it. Every morning he, Lori, and Blubber would have breakfast, lunch, and dinner together at their usual table. Sometimes other people would join them. Lori liked to invite a shy boy named Topo over whenever she could catch him. He never said much, and La'gaan always got the feeling that he was in a constant state of panic. Other days, a girl named Tula would sit with them for a few minutes. But she was inevitably called away to another table after about ten minutes. Whoever Tula was, she seemed pretty popular.

After breakfast, they would report to their classes. The farther they got into the material, the further behind La'gaan fell. Despite Lori's best efforts and extra help from all of his professors, he was struggling. The only class he was doing moderately well in was sorcery. The more he practiced at it, the easier it became. Professor Calista was pleased with his progress. Every time he did well she would shower praise on him. It was a little embarrassing, but also extremely gratifying. Every other teacher looked at him with a mix of pity and frustration. (Or, in Professor Tullus' case, bitter disappointment.) She was the only one that ever had any reason to encourage him.

He should have realized that this would make him a target.

Yet he didn't. Instead he continued on with his routine, day after day. Breakfast, classes, studying, then perhaps a trip out into Poseidonis with his two friends. The structure was entirely new to him. It had been a long time since anyone cared enough to tell him when to eat, when to do this, when to do that, when to sleep. It was nice, yet frustrating. There were days when he missed being able to wake up when he wanted and do whatever he wanted without anyone caring. But overall La'gaan liked it. Perhaps structure was one of the things he'd been missing out on. When you're an abandoned guppy hopping from home to home, there isn't much stability.

About one month into the semester, this daily routine was interrupted. The interruption came in the form of Ronal and his friends.

La'gaan, Blubber, and Lori were swimming to their classes when four older students blocked their way. All four of them were in their sorcery class, though La'gaan had never paid much attention to them before that moment.

Immediately, he knew that they were a genuine threat.

"Hey, minnows," La'gaan said, stopping where he was. "Let's go the long way today. Through the kelp gardens."

"We're going to be late if we go that way!" Blubber protested. "Come on; there's nothing to be afraid of. They're just upperclassmen trying to intimidate us. That's all."

Lori nodded once and pulled La'gaan along. "Don't be scared."

"I'm not scared, I just don't want us to get our tail fins kicked before our next class!" La'gaan hissed. They were getting closer to the four older students, and he didn't want them to hear his concerns. Letting people know you were afraid gave them power over you.

One of the four crossed his arms and smirked at them. "What are you three fish heads up to?"

"We are going to class," Lori answered, trying her best to sound both polite and firm. "As you should be doing."

"Oh, so now a little fish fucker is going to tell us what to do?" One of the girls shoved Lori's shoulder. La'gaan looked around for a way out. But somehow the group had encircled them. They could always swim over them or underneath them, but that would result in a chase. La'gaan was sure he could outswim these four eels without trouble. But could Lori? Could Blubber?

"Don't touch her!" La'gaan growled, swimming between the two girls.

The other four students laughed. The girl leaned forward, her black eyes taunting him. "Aw! The fish fucker has a little beau."

La'gaan felt heat rise to his cheeks. He didn't want anyone referring to him as Lori's 'beau'. They were friends. Best friends. But anything beyond that seemed weird and a little bit gross. "Shut up and get out of our way! We don't have time for shark bait like you."

Sometimes, talking big worked in situations like this.

But not today.

One of the boys, the one with blonde hair, grabbed him by the back of his neck. "What did you say, _MIΓAΣ_?"

Lori and Blubber gasped. La'gaan stared at him in momentary shock. No one had ever called him that word before. Once Aurelius, his only friend in Nanauve, had explained the word and its origin. It was one of the worst swears the Atlantean language had to offer. It translated out to 'impure' which was a harmless little word by itself. But when it was mixed with a thousand years of bigotry and hate, it took on a much darker meaning.

Before he was even aware of what he was doing, La'gaan twisted out of the boy's grip and raked his claws across his face. "_NEVER_ call me that!"

The situation deteriorated into a brawl. One of the boys grabbed Lori's arm, and she smacked them away with her tail. Blubber used his weight to his advantage and slammed into another boy. Meanwhile La'gaan was still clawing at the offender's face, consumed with rage.

Someone got between him and his prey. Assuming it was another one of this boy's friends, La'gaan tried to claw at them. A webbed hand caught his wrist in mid-swipe. A calm but firm voice said, "That's enough, my friend."

Three more students had entered the fray to break it apart. One of them La'gaan recognized. It was Tula, the girl who occasionally sat with them at meals. She was joined by two boys that he didn't know. One of them had black hair and strange violet eyes. The other had brown skin, webbed hands, and gills on his neck. All three of them appeared to be two or three years older than La'gaan and his friends, the same age as the other four.

"What in the name of Neptune are you four doing?" the black-haired boy growled. "Attacking first years? Have you no honor, Ronal?"

Ronal, the blonde boy who was currently bleeding from cuts La'gaan had inflicted on him, frowned at him. "This is none of your business, Garth."

"Very true," said the boy with gills. "But it is, however, the Dean of Students' business."

"We are only teaching this one his place!" snapped the girl with black eyes. She point towards La'gaan. "We know what you are, bottom feeder! You're nothing but a murdering little freak! The only reason you're here is because Queen Mera felt sorry for you!"

The black-haired boy swam in between them. "Enough! Leave!"

Ronal and his three friends departed. As soon as they had gone, La'gaan turned on Tula and her two friends. "What do you three think you're doing?! Now they'll _never_ leave us alone!"

"La'gaan!" Lori frowned at him. "Tula and her friends just helped us!"

He shook his head. Living on his own taught him many things. One of them, incidentally, was how to handle bullies. (Though the bullies on the streets were typically a lot more dangerous.) If you could match them in a fight, you had to beat them so bad that they'd be scared to even look at you the wrong way. If you couldn't beat them, you had to avoid them. La'gaan knew that he could take on Ronal and his friends. They were nothing compared to the people he had known in Nanauve. The blood on his claws proved that much. "If we don't stop this now, they'll keep harassing us! It'll just get worse and worse!"

The boy that had pulled him off of Ronal set a hand on his shoulder. "Further violence will not stop anything."

La'gaan yanked away from him. "Further violence will lead to them leaving us alone!"

His friends pulled him aside. After a couple of minutes of angry whispering between the three of them, Blubber and Lori managed to convince La'gaan to apologize for snapping at their saviors. (Despite the fact he still didn't think he had done anything wrong.) It was then that the trios were formally met one another. Tula introduced her two friends, Garth and Kaldur'ahm (Who preferred to go by Kaldur).

"Thank you for helping us," Lori said. "I don't know why they were so mad at us."

"It's because you three are younger, and are on the same skill level as the rest of us," Kaldur explained. "They feel threatened."

"Threatened? By us?" La'gaan repeated. He and his friends look at each other, genuinely confused. "Are you sure they aren't just prejudiced?"

Garth frowned. "Well, they are that as well…but I would not worry about them. Ronal isn't completely bad; though he has been hard to deal with as of late…"

His friends nodded in agreement. Kaldur said, "I think it is due to the influence of his newfound friends…they have rather…_old-fashioned_ ideals as to how an Atlantean should look and behave. I'm sure that is part of the problem."

"Old-fashioned? What do you mean?" Blubber asked.

La'gaan sighed. "I swear, Blubber, you're so innocent sometimes…by 'old-fashioned' he means 'as prejudiced as an eel'."

"Eels are prejudiced?" Blubber stared at him, confused.

"No, they're just- never mind." He gave up trying. Blubber had become his best friend in the first few days of school, but sometimes he could be a little dense. In the classroom, he was a genius. Everywhere else…he was just a tad clueless.

Tula smiled slightly. "We had better be going; we're all late for classes by now, I'm sure."

"What?!" Blubber cried. "Oh, no…"

"Hey, maybe if we're lucky, you'll all get to have detention with me!" La'gaan laughed. "Last one to mathematics is a piece of rotten shark bait!"

With that he shot off. Lori laughed and swam after him, quickly taking the lead. Their friend Blubber was left behind. He struggled to catch up, though whales (and whale boys) were not exactly built for speed. Kaldur, Tula, and Garth stood by and watched them with amused smiles on their faces.

"They remind me of us, when we were first years," Kaldur mused.

"Hopefully they won't get into as much trouble as we did." Garth chuckled slightly, thinking back on their first days at the Conservatory.

"Something tells me that they will. If not more," Tula replied. She smiled and tugged on both of their arms. "Now come! We're already late!"

"So then what's the point of hurrying?" Garth asked, playfully tugging her back. Tula squealed and swam away from both of them. Her friend laughed. "Last one there is a piece of rotten shark bait?"

Tula grinned. "Exactly!"

Garth and Kaldur chuckled, then swam after her.


End file.
